[Racoon]

There are some pretty amazing plant and tree species!
And what would life be like without them? well, I think we know there wouldn't be much human activity...

So, I think the Ginkgo tree is pretty neat.

Ginkgo's are a living fossil, and date back 270,000,000 years! when there were dinosaurs.
And this tree can live well past a thousand years. The oldest ginkgo in China is more tham 3,500 years.

here is everything you might want to know
http://www.xs4all.nl/~kwanten/thetree.htm

[HydrogenBond]

Maybe some of the large plant eating dinosaurs, eating tons of ginko, owe some of their success to this medical tree.

Equally amazing but not as pretty are the stunted twisted pine trees that grow at the timber line in the White Mountains of NH, especially on Mt Washington. They may only get a foot tall after many decades. They are able to survive in rocky crevices in some of the most extreme weather conditions on earth ranging from hot summer days, flooding rains and bitter winters. The whole area is a wind tunnel with the summit, only a few thousand feet higher in elevation holding the world record for wind speed, i.e., 231 MPH. They are ugly but are held in high respect.

[Mercedes Benzene]

Damn it.

When I saw the thread title, I thought to myself... "I'm going to post 'Ginkgo tree' ".
Then I read your first post....
...and was dissapointed. lol.

[Mercedes Benzene]

Okay, okay.

Witch Hazel is another one of my favorites!

[Racoon]

Originally Posted by HydrogenBond

Equally amazing but not as pretty are the stunted twisted pine trees that grow at the timber line in the White Mountains of NH, especially on Mt Washington. They may only get a foot tall after many decades. They are ugly but are held in high respect.

I'm not sure which tree you're referring too,
But the Bristlecone Pine fits that description. Except it does get bigger.

These tree's live in amazingly harsh environments and can live to be 5,000 years old!!
They are, I believe, the worlds longest lived tree; and incredibly, the harsher the environment and higher altitudes, the added longevity.
However, They are mostly found in California (for the most part that I know)




EDIT: LINK HERE FOR MORE INFO!

http://www.sonic.net/bristlecone/growth.html

[Mercedes Benzene]

These tree's live in amazingly harsh environments and can live to be 5,000 years old!!

Very cool trees indeed.

They look like something from a scary movie...
or a Van Gogh painting...

[Racoon]

Originally Posted by Mercedes Benzene

Very cool trees indeed.

They look like something from a scary movie...
or a Van Gogh painting...

The Witch Hazel tree you mentioned, MB, is an important tree to the Native Americans.
It is medicinal as you know, along with Ginkgo.
Its particulary good for cuts, scrapes, skin irritation, and hemorroids.
Witch Hazel is an anti inflammatory, and makes a great skin tonic.

You can imagine the Indians getting all kinds of cuts and scrapes during a day out in the woods; and then applying some soothing,healing Witch Hazel at night.
Beauty and Utility

That is a nice thumbnail attachment. Btw.

[Cedars]

Another excellent thread Racoon!

Two of my favorite carnivorous plants are the Venus Flytrap:

http://www.botany.org/bsa/misc/carn.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_Flytrap

and the Pitcher Plants:
http://www.botany.org/Carnivorous_Plants/Nepenthes.php
http://www.ct-botanical-society.org/...ceniapurp.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitcher_plant

Its good that they can culture/grow these so no one has to take them from the wild. Growing up, we learned not to tell where pitcher plants were so people wouldnt go and dig them up.

[Mercedes Benzene]

Thanks racoon!
Witch Hazel is AMAZING!

Two of my favorite carnivorous plants are the Venus Flytrap:

and the Pitcher Plants:

I flippin' love pitcher plants!

I thought I once heard that the only place venus fly traps grew in nature were in a national forest in north carolina...
...or maybe that was where they originated...??
Not sure. Research necessary.

[ughaibu]

Rafflesia arnoldii: http://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/flower.html